I have no new pictures

They're all on my iPhone, and blogger doesn't like my iPhone. Facebook does, so you can see pictures there.
We had a great holiday here. No snow, but that's part of the reason I like it here. The kids are now off visiting the PA grandparents and having a great time. I think Joey was actually able to fill himself up at their "open house" yesterday. He really does make it sound like we don't feed him.

The newest stage of making me feel old comes next week when we sit down with his guidance counselor to plan out highschool so Joey can achieve his college goals. It sounds kid of daunting, but really its just about making sure he takes the classes he needs in order to go to the college he wants, and if he knows, get a head start towards his chosen field of study. Joey does know, he wants to be an architect.

Mackenzie unbeknowst to me entered a writing contest at school and won 2nd place! Her piece is now being sent to the district finals.

Joel is loving kindergarten, but is still working out the kinks as far as getting along with others goes. He often becomes upset when other kids aren't on task and forgets to keep his hands to himself. But, he's a little sponge and is absorbing so much.

Tonight is New Year's and I'd love to say I have fabulous plans with Wes, but I have to work. I've applied for some other positions and I hope one will work out. I'm tired of this crazy schedule of mine! But Happy New Year everyone!

I now pronounce you...

Joel's latest bout of Joel-ness: If you kiss someone 3 times you are now married. He and I have been hitched several times this week.

What goes on in my head...

I'm having one of those moments where I miss my old nom de plume blog. I'm a pretty easy going person, I usually don't take things too personally. The reason is that I find an ear I can trust and talk my anger out so I can get over it and let it go. The trouble is everyone I know is asleep when I'm awake. So my next step would have been my old blog, but the server I used no longer exists. Putting it here opens me up to attack and possibly hurting other's feelings. It's very frustrating. Sometimes I wish I could be one of those people that doesn't care what other people think!

Asking for help

I think I have a hero complex. I just HAVE to try to help/save people. Without going into too much detail, here is my latest cause:
A boy who perhaps did not grow up in the best environment, who also has the added issue of being bi-polar. He has anger and authority issues and has been kicked out of several schools. And the word NO is not something he knows how to hear. Me and my hero complex won't give up on him where others have.
Here is what I need help with:
intervention ideas
home schooling options
therapy possibilities
anything else that anyone can suggest. But, remember, I am on a seriously limited budget.
Anything anyone has as far as ideas will be greatly appreciated. If you can't or don't want to comment here, please email or call me.
Thank You!!!

Oh blah dee oh blah da

Life goes on....
It's been a while since I last typed out a bog. No particular reason, except there isn't much to report.
Everyone is doing great. THe flu that seems to be affecting nearly everyone we know has so far skipped us. (knock on wood) Although, it is going around my building at work, so we'll see.
The kids are doing great at school. Joel had a rough start but has settled into the swing of things and is doing very well in kindergarten. Mackenzie just ended her first kickball season, with the next one staring in a few weeks. She is also giving chorus another try this year. Fortunately her friend down the street participates in the same activites, so her grandma and I split the carpool for those things. Its also nice that they have each other for homework help this year. It also helps that she has Joey to go to for math help, I'm useless there. Joey is doing great. He's very into his art class and is submitting a project to be displayed at the Coastal Carolina Fair. Since it takes longer to cool down here, the fairs aren't held until this time of year. He recently got to sit with the marching band during a highschool football game in order to get to know the section he'd be in and ask questions and decide if marching band is something he is interested in. He is very excited to give it a try next year.
I still hate my job, but I show up and do what I can. I hold out hope that the economy will turn around and I will no longer be competing with over qualified people for the few jobs that are out there. For now I'm grateful for what I have.
In other news, Mackenzie has a boyfriend, which I try to neither encourage or discourage too much. They've already broken up and got back together once. Its all very 5th grade. Joey has several girls he texts with back and forth, but as he says, they're "just friends". That's fine by me. Oh, and Joel has his first official non family sleep over a few weeks ago. One of Mackenzie's class mates has a little brother that is also a class mate of Joel's. Their brave mother took on having both of them sleeping over the same night. Actually she said it was great because Bobby for once wasn't bothering Mackenzie & Alexis because he ahd Joel there. She said because she didn't have to play referee she was able to get stuff done around the house. Me, I went out for Mexican food with Joey & Wes. Can't say I'm an over achiever!

Take your drama elsewhere!

Just one of those things that make me go grrr....some people just suck!

Wes, Joey, and I in celebration of being without the picky eaters of the house went to our favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner. While we are waiting for food, a couple walks in the door. He headed towards the "bar", she kinda pouted after him talking VERY loudly on her phone. After a minute or two, she walked more into the center of the restaurant (its pretty small) in order to share her conversation better with the rest of us.
Now what I think happened is her companion asked her to get off the phone. Next thing you know, she's yelling at the guy, throwing out F bombs and all other forms of foul language, telling him if he doesn't do her bidding (I guess this restaurant was beneath her) and take her home, she was gonna call her family and they'd come get her and "F" him up.
She was finally asked to leave. About 5 minutes later he left with his take out. Seriously, she couldn't sit around and wait a few minutes for take out!
So, we're on the way home, pull into our development, and there she is, standing on the side walk, still hollering on her phone.
Joey's friend lives next door to the boyfriend, and I guess she starts all this drama quite often. Take me here, take me there. Give me this, give me that. High maintenance, spoiled rotten, plain old trash.

Fall is here!

Fall has always been my favorite season. I think its the colors. But fall in South Carolina is just awesome! The storms seem to lay off a bit (even though it is still hurricane season) and the weather is just gorgeous! The nights get cool enough that the air doesn't need to be run anymore, but its sunny and crisp in the mornings, but still enjoy 80 degree weather in the afternoon. Then by sundown it is nice and cool again.
You're jealous, you can admit it, its okay.

Pictures from WA

Wes was a littlecamera happy, so I'm paring it down just a bit.
First, here I am with my new dark brown hair (and Wes too)

Some wedding photos:

The boys in their tuxes


Check out Mackenzie's hair!


Brittany with all the "little" girls


Javier with the "little" boys


Saying their vows


The newly weds


And now some of the sights:

Pike Place Market


Russell enjoying his chili dog


Wes & Russell at the zoo entrance


The boys with their cousins


It was a great trip! Wish we could have stayed a little longer, lots of faces I didn't get to see! Oh well, next time.

Accomplished!

I actually accomplished things on my list! No really, I did! It was my Seattle wish list and not my chore list, but check marks are check marks, right? That and even a couple of extras. I feel very fulfilled!

Slurpee...check
Jack in the Box...check
Favorite coffee stand and seeing Emily the best barista in the world...check
Zoo...check
Spud...check
Pike Place and the piers...check
See's candy...check
Papa Murphy's...check

On top of that I got to see lots of family, get my hair done by Debbie (I'm a brunette now), mani, pedi, and face waxed at my favorite nail salon, a couple of visits to the casino, an Orange Julius, and we did have one day sunny enough to get a good view of Mt. Ranier. All in all a great trip! Pictures coming soon!

Home Sweet Home

On Thursday we head out for a mini vacay back to Washington!
I'm so excited, I haven't been home in over a year, and I miss it. Yes, I've taken up permanent residence here is SC, but Seattle will always be home!
The reason we're heading out west? My niece Brittany is getting married! I'm still not convinced she's even legally old enough to do so, but any excuse to hit the great Pac West.
So, here is a list of things I hope to accomplish while back in my home state for 4 whole days:
1. Slurpee!!!
2. Visit my favorite coffee stand in Arlington, and hopefully say hi to my barista if she still works there!
3. Jack in the Box!
4. Spud's!
5. Downtown, the pier, Pike Place, and all that.
6. The zoo!
7. Slurpee!
8. Papa Murphy's!!!
9. Kayak Point or Camano Island state park, which ever.
10. I know its a long shot and not very likely, but a visit to the islands would rock!
11. Friends, friends, friends
12. Slurpee!
13. See's Candy!
14. oh, and 1 more Slurpee!
Just hope I can fit it all in.

Stop Growing, NOW!!!!

So, everybody got home safe and sound from their adventurous summer. What I failed to mention is that my kids were not returned to me the way I left them! Joey grew at least an inch. Joel about 1/2 and inch. Joey is wearing a size 10 men's shoe, and is almost his dad's height. Oh, and his voice is cracking. Joel is completely out of the "T" sizes and wearing big boy sizes. His feet jumped a size or 2 as well. Mackenzie is pretty much the same. But she is an enigma, she really just doesn't have huge growth spurts.
To make matters worse, they all started school Monday. Really, the house was just way too quiet without Joel. And coming home from work with the house completely empty this morning was just weird! But I have to face the facts. My babies are growing up, and I must learn to deal with it. But man, where did the time go?


The whole bus stop gang


Joey being 13 now, didn't want his mother trailing him to the bus stop with a camera looking like a crazy lady. Go figure!

Home Sweet Home

After being gone most of the summer, the kids are finally home! Kind of, but I'll get to that. We also have a new resident. Russell is officially living with us, as Wes was just made his legal guardian. School starts Monday, but we are mostly prepared. Just one or two last minute things to get.
The kids got in to Charlotte late Friday night, so we stayed the night with Penny and Zack so we wouldn't be pulling in at 1 am. We all slept in a bit, and got on the road around 1. Just before Penny left to get Keith from the Columbia airport, finally home from Iraq.
One of my favorite Joel quotes so far: I was getting him settled in the back seat, and he is just yammering away about his trip. As I'm shutting the door, I guess he said "hey mommy" but I didn't heart. And I'm still trying to get myself in the car and get settled. So he says to Wes, "She NEVER listens to me!" That and he was making sure that eeveryone knew that nobody could play with his new DS but him!
On the way out we made a quick stop at Jack in the Box. Charlotte actually has the closest ones, and I desperately needed an Oreo Cookie shake and some fries!
Once we got home Saturday afternoon, we worked on unpacking and cleaning out closets and drawers, trying to make room for Russell's things. After that, the kids were out the door to find their friends. They missed me so much that both Joey & Mackenzie spent the night with friends last night!
Welcome home!
Oh, and Teri...
Joey says Joel started crying Friday night because he missed you SO much, and he's called me Aunt Teri several times already.

SCHOOL!

I registered the kids for school today, and I have to say I'm excited! No Rachel, not because I'm ready to get rid of them. I'm actually a little sad that they've been gone all summer and will start school almost immediately when they get back. I'm excited FOR them. No, really.
Joey is starting his *gasp* LAST year of middle school. He got into the advance art class (which he is SO excited about) and advanced band. And because the French teacher is no longer teaching at the school, he is taking Spanish instead. He can't wait to start testing it out on his cousins, not to mention testing out what he already knows with his teacher.
Mackenzie is starting her **another gasp** LAST year of elementary school. And she finally made it into GATE (gifted and talented enrichment program), even better, she will be in the same class as her best friend Blythe (see here).
Joel is starting ***one more gasp*** KINDERGARTEN! This is especially exciting for him as he is the only of my kids to not have attended pre-school and/or PreK. So it is really his FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!
I'm so excited I could almost cry! My babies are growing up!

Domestic Partnership

I was recently shopping for car insurance. Mine expired in July, so I was doing my yearly price check. On one site, as I was filling out their questioneer, they asked about marital status. Apparantly you are a higher risk being divorced over being married, but that is for another post. Anyway, one of the options on this particular site was "domestic partnership". I liked that, because I am neither single, nor married. Calling Wes my boyfriend sounds oh so very 11th grade. Especially after living together for a year. So I asked myself, do we qualify? I mean, most of the time, domestic patnership is a label given to same sex relationships. But, if I am living with, and commited to a person, isn't that precisely what we are, domestic partners? We share a house, bills, a blended family, chores, stress, money woes, pets, and all that other stuff. The only difference from us and a married couple is that we haven't made a public statement in front of friends and family, and clergy or legal authority that we will love honor cherish till death so us part. I don't want to down size marriage here. We are very careful not to present ourselves as married, because we aren't. We might be one day, but for now, we aren't.
But, just because we aren't married, does that mean we shouldn't be considered when it comes to certain things that are preserved for immediate family only, or for discounts that occur when you are married? So that has me thinking about the whole same sex marriage debate. I know I'm stepping into some murky waters here, but have to say, if two people love each other and want to get married, who am I to say they can't? How does it insult my marriage or relationship if two men wnat the same right to marry the one they love as I am? If a church has an issue, that's fine, then the church can chose not to officiate over the marriage, but where does a democratic government of a country that holds equal rights as one of its biggest concerns get off telling a same sex couple that the LAW does not allow them to share the same legal rights as other commited couples?
I'm just saying, if I ought to be able to use the domestic partnership title, why can't someone else get married?

If we were Jewish....

Joey would be a man. But we're not so he is just another 13 year old boy. But on this day I'm still having a rough time coming to terms with the idea that I am the mother of a 13 year old. But what a great 13 year old I have! Joey came into the world making my life a little miserable, having weighed in at 10 lbs 8 0z. No, I did not have a C-section. I did however pledge my love to the man who gave me my epidural. Joey's was a well attended birth. He had mom (of course) and even waited for dad to come home from Turkey before making his appearance. Also there were Grandma Marci and Aunt Teri. Stopping in to visit were Anne and Brian, Uncle Ernie, Brittany, and Grandpa Larry. As hard as bringing him into the world may have been, he was a piece of cake after that. Aside from some breast feeding issues at first, we was the best baby ever! He slept through the night within the first couple of weeks. At 3 weeks old, he traveled by car from Seattle to Ft. Campbell, Ky. He went through a terrible 2's stage, but by the time he hit 3 had worked it all out.
As time has gone by we've learned so much about Joey. He is very empathetic and caring. He is artistic and musical. He has played piano, trumpet and French horn. He's very smart, though convincing other's of that was a challenge at first. He doesn't test well, so he's always had to proove himself the hard way. Being the oldest he's had to become more responsible than most of his peers at his age, but responsible he is. He is easy going, and puts up with a younger and sister and brother who worship him maybe a little too much sometimes. Overall, he's just such a great kid, and I feel so blessed to have him as MY kid.

In Memorium

George died July 22nd, 2009, sometime around 1-2 pm. She was 15, and survived by many family members that loved her, others that tolerated her. George was contrary right from the bieginning. Starting with her name. We were assured by the veterinarian she was a he, so we name "him" George. Then, he turned out to be she, but the name still stuck. Geoge came into my life as a 2 week old abandon kitten September of 1994. She was my first baby. I had to mix her formula and feed her every 4 hours through an eye dropper. Then I even had to wipe her behind. Those first few weeks she slept in whatever shirt I had been wearing that day. During the day, she pent most of her time under my shirt close to my belly. As time went by George became a bit rebelious, choosing to eat the dog food over her own. She got quite fat. She didn't like too many people, she tolerated Mike and I for the most part, and I think she even frew fond of my dad. Although she seemed mean, she was protective. Out other cat, Tahli was challenged mentally, and not very good at sticking up for himself. When one of our dogs got a little overly frisky with Tahli, George came to his recsue, only to growl and hiss at him when he tried to thank her. George was a world traveler, having been born in Turkey, and lived in Tennessee, Germany, Washington, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. Not to mention all the car and plane trips it took to get to those places. In the last few years, she lost a lot of her weight. This last year she got very thin, and the last week she was barely skin and bones. She was a pain in the butt a lot of the time, but nevertheless, she was family and we will all miss her. Most of all me.
A big thank you to Pet Rest in Goose Creek, SC for taking such great care of departed pets, most off all George. They were so nice, and thoughtful. They even sent me a memorial card. Rest in peace George.
**Regretably, I have no pictures of George on this computer. Once I track down some of my photo discs, I will post for those of you who did not get to meet her.

Happy Birthday to me!

In honor of my 9th 25th birthday, I'm going to take a page from someone else's book, and give everyone one little known fact for every year of my life. I've done this a few times before, so I will try not to repeat myself, but if I do, it just means I'm not that interesting.

1. I share my birthday with a great uncle, and a great friend I've known since junior high, so be sure to wish Rachel a happy birthday as well.
2. I hated having a summer birthday growing up because a) I was younger than nearly everyone else in my class and b) everyone was on vacation around my birthday.
3. I think the worst birthday I ever spent was my 16th. I was at camp and the night before it had rained (big surprise in Washington, I know). I was on a biking trip and when it rained we slept under tarps. My sleeping bag ended up under the one and only hole in the tarp. The wet woke me up about 3 am and I ended up sitting under a tree to keep dry and reading abook until everyone else got up too.
4. Going with milestones, my 21st birthday wasn't much better. I was pregnant during one of the hottest summers in Washington. It was my due date and no sign that the baby was coming any time soon.
5. I honestly don't remember what I did for my 18th birthday.
6. One birthday I remember taking a few friends to a movie. I think it was my 11th, and they wouldn't let Kristi Hewitt in for the jumior price because she was so tall.
7. One person tried to throw me a surprise party once, it didn't go well. It was a total surprise, but it back fired a bit when I came home after work and a stop at the commissary while living in Turkey. My arms were full of groceries and I couldn't get to my key. I knocked on the door knowing someone was home, but no one asnswered. I ended up dropping the groceries all over the hallway in order to get to my key. I was pretty upset once I got inside and everyone yelled SURPRISE!
8. One year I went to Wild Waves with Mikiko and got one of the worst sun burns ever!
9. Enough about past birthdays...I'm snobby about how a sandwich is made. The spread of choice be it peanut butter, mayo, jelly, butter, whatever should reach all corners of the bread, and any other ingredients (cheese, lunch meat) should be staked neatly, not just thrown on there.
10. I think one of my main objections to house work is I hate putting all that effort into something and not even getting a chance to enjoy it before it is all undone.
11. I hate to cook, but put on a fantastic Thanksgiving. This comes from often times being away from family for the holiday, and having friends over instead. I always made the Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and a vegetable. Everyone else brought other side dishes or dessert.
12. Wes thinks I'm a hippie. I don't know about that, but in ways I guess I am a "free spirit". I would have loved to have been alive for and gone to Woodstock!
13. I've always wanted to live in New York City. Probably not permanently, but I think I would enjoy the apartment life, the culture, the little whole in the wall places you can find in NYC.
14.I have a serious celebrity crush on Colin Firth. I don't know why, I don't know what started it, but it is there.
15. Before Colin I was all about Tom Hanks, ever since Splash. I watched him on Bosom Buddies, but it wasn't until Splash that I had the crush.
>>>I'm beginning to think its a dark curly hair thing<<<<
16. My first word was water, then I'd learn boat, so everytime we crossed Lake Washington when I was little I would go nuts over the Water! Boat!
17. I loved going to Husky games with my dad. With my thermos of hot chocolate, a bag of apples from the UW Crew, and my garbage bag rain poncho.
18. I miss the Kingdome! Yeah, Safeco field is awesome, and I love it, and Quest field is great too, but I still miss the Kingdome.
19. I have an affinity for a lot of the old southern homes out here. One of these days I plan on getting up with the sun and going around to take some pictures of them. Its one of the things I've come to love about this area.
20. One of my pet peeves is when people take advantage of my non confrontational manner. I like to keep the peace, and I'm ok being the bigger person, but taking advantage of that is a quick way to make me confrontational. Maybe.
21. When I lived in New Jersey, I played BINGO almost every Saturday night at the fire house. I loved it. I had many colored dobbers, I could play several boards at a time, and I even had a couple of good luck charms on my table.
22. You know those T-shirts that say, "I'm BIG in Europe". That's me. Europeans love me. Or atleast I always seemed to have a social life while living in Europe. Not so much in the states. Does that make me un-American.
23. Speaking of un-American, I don't like Apple Pie or hot dogs.
24. I'm really freaked out about Joey turning 13 this year.
25. I'm really freaked out about Joel starting school this year.
26. I love maps. I love planning out routes, looking for cool places to stop, finding a short cut, or a scenic route.
27. Every time I move to a new place, I go out and "get lost" so I can find my way back again. Its the best way to get to know your way around a new area.
28. I am a choco-holic, BUT I don't care for chocolate ice cream that much.
29. I would love to visit Price Edward Island one day. I think I've read the Anne of Green Gables series about 4 times through now.
30. Two places I don't think I could ever live: California and/or Texas.
31. I miss Jack in the Box. What I wouldn't do for a Sourdough Jack and an Oreo shake! And Slurpees! How can there not be 7-11's around here?!
32. The last time I lived in Washington, I visited a coffe stand almost every morning, but I don't drink coffee. I would get a hot white chocolate or a strawberry Italian soda. Emily was the best barista ever!
33. I think Wes and I will keep Krispy Kreme in business just on our own habit.
34. I hate working a flexible schedule. I've adjusted to 3rd shift but the flex schedule is kiling me!

Date Nights

With the kids off visiting their grandparents, Wes and I have been trying to work some "quality" time into our schedules. I had the weekend off 2 weeks ago. We met up with Wes's friend Mike and his wife Sierra.
The plan was to go out on Mike's little boat to a restaurant out on the harbor, but rain cancelled those plans. But, by the time we met up, the rain was gone (of course). We met up at a sports bar so Mike could watch the last couple innings of the Yankees/Mets game. I was ok with that since I like to see the Yankees lose, and Mike is a Mets fan. We got some appetizers, I had crab cakes that were really good. Then we went ahead and went to the restaurant we had planned, but by land instead of by sea. Its actually on the tributary, not the harobour, but it was cool to sit there on the dock and enjoy the weather. We saw some dolphins and pelicans in the water and they had a guy singing John Mellancamp songs. I had some She-Crab soup and warm crab dip. So it was crab night. After dinner we went to see The Hangover. Hilarious movie! The movie theater was pretty cool. Its called Cinnebarre. They've taken out every other row of seats in the theater so waiters can walk through and bring you things like beer, pizza, milkshakes, yes even popcorn. I've decided I can only wear flip flops when we go out with Mike and Sierra. You might recall what happened to my little red shoes when we once went to their house (the dog chewed them up). Then the last time we went out, my shoes fell apart, the soles just completely came off. This time I stepped in gum. Forget flip flops, I'll just go bare foot.
Briana and Russell spent last week with us. Its kind of blur to me, I was asleep most of the week. One of those weeks where it just seemed no matter how much sleep I got, it wasn't enough. But we had some fun playing guitar hero and watching some old movies.
Friday night Wes and I wanted to go out and see Transformers. I even got all dressed up for it. We don't get out much, so I figured why not wear a dress? All of Summerville seemed to have the same idea because all the evening showings at both theaters were sold out. We tried again Saturday afternoon. We were going to go to the "cheap" theater because they have matinee prices, but they were sold out all afternoon up until the last showing at 10:20. So, we went ahead to the other theater, we were determined at this point! Its a long movie, but worth all the trouble. Very good especially for a sequel. We highly reccomend it. That'll probably be our last movie until Harry Potter comes out in July. Then I'm sure Wes will want to go see GI Joe. Boys and their toys and all that.
Besides that, life without the kids is almost too quiet. We miss them. We especially missed the part where Joel cut his own hair. I'm kind of glad Grandma and Grandpa got to deal with that one. But they are having a great time being spoinled by all the Bakers and Kindigs. They come home this Friday for a few days before they head off to Washington for the rest of the summer before school starts August 17th.
Speaking of school, Mackenzie's teacher pleaded her case and got her enrolled in the GATE (gifted) program for next year. She's very excited because her friend Blythe (see below) is also in GATE. I'm trying not to dwell on the fact that Joel starts school this year, or that Joey officially becomes a teenager at the end of July. I feel old enough already without those reminders!

Summer Projects

With the empty house for most of the summer, and therefore no excuse (other than work) for not getting stuff done, I've decided to make a to do list. Thanks to Rachel for the idea. So, this will be my main list with detail, and I'll post a smaller check list to the side. So, in no particular order, here we go:
~do "something" about my bedroom
this means pretty much what it says, my room (our room, whatever) has become the catch all room. Also, there are still boxes of Wes's stuff that hasn't been unpacked, mostly because we ran out of closet and drawer space by the time he got it all over here.
~go through the junk piles throughout the house
this is seperate from the giant junk pile that is my room. This is all the magazines, flyers, stuff from school and what not that has piled up in several places throughout the house.
~Get stuff off to Goodwill.
I have a ton of stuff from Joel & Macenzie ready to go (Joey's stuff stays for Joel's later use), and it is time for me to go through my things again.
~super clean all rooms
Just that, take the fine tooth comb, tooth brush, white gloves to each individula room. Spring Cleaning if you will.
~Clean out front and back gardens
While I don't have big plans to plant anything something must be done about the weeds. Yay, weed pulling, my favorite!
~Wash the outside of all the windows.
Still figuring out a way to do that for the upstairs windows with no ladder and a house with sucky water pressure
~House train Gillian
We've been coralling her in the kitchen, but with the kids gone and unable to instigate her hyper puppy issues, I'm hoping to get a chance to teach her what is chew toy and what is not, to stay downstairs, and to quit running around like a mad dog.
~Organize Stamp & Scrapbook stuff
~Go through photos
I have all the family photos and had promised to scan and share. I have alwasys intended to do so, just never really been up to undertaking the task. But, I've started on this one already.
~Actually do some scrapbooking
~Find a new job
This has been on going for a couple months now, not going well
~Figure out what to do about Joey's school issues
Long story, but will keep you posted
~Blog more
~Finally write that novel
this one is a joke, really
So, remember to bug me about all this, but keep in mind, I'm still working and while the kids being gone takes away an excuse for not getting stuff done, it also gives me more to do as someone has to do their chores while their gone.

The Cutest Thing Ever!

You may recall that a girl down the street invited Mackenzie to go to the Taylor Swift concert with her. Well, her name is Blythe. We've tried a couple of times to have her sleep over, but she can't. Blythe is a diabetic. She has to have her blood sugar checked in the middle of the night and her mom just isn't ready to let her handle that on her own. She also has to wear a monitor at all times. It looks kind of like she's got a cell phone or something under her shirt. Anyway, one day she was over here along with another neighbor, Angelina. The three girls were having some fun with my stamps. The next thing I know they had made these:

So they could all be like Blythe (on the right, showing off the REAL monitor. How cute is that?

I'm in trouble

I talked to my sister today and she got on my case about not blogging. So here I go. I had tried to post a video of Joey singing karaoke, but it wouldn't load. This weekend he's going to get it up on his youtube account and I'll post the link, along with his band concert. How did it come about that Joey was singing karaoke? No, we didn't take him to a bar (althoug it was somewhat close). At the campground where Wes' family has a permanent site, they host karaoke on the "big" weekends. And Joey was the only brave one of our group. He sang Mambo #5, and the karaoke host was very impressed with how he did. He (the host) was sure with his age and shy demeanor that Joey would need some back up help, but he didn't, he did great. Better than some of the adults, although a lot of them were pretty plastered. I also made him do the Chicken Dance with me:

He also got up and did the Cha Cha Slide, I was busy taking the pictures this time:

What about Mackenzie? She was hanging out at the camper with Briana, and keeping an eye on Joel, who doesn't like loud music. But she did celebrate a birthday. Yep, I am now the mother of 2 kids of double digit age. 10 years old, where did the time go? I still remember when she didn't have hair. Of course, she was 3 before she had any, so it isn't as hard as you might think. We had dinner out at Applebees and they embarrassed her immensely by singing to her. Here she is opening one of her presents, she was so excited over what she got, I couldn't get it in the picture:

As for Joel, he just seems to make himself scarce whenever the camera's out. But here's one from a month ago of him doing the limbo in his pajama;s (sounds like a song title!):

The kids are gearing up for the end of school next week and their impending trip to PA to see Mike's family. Then they'll be off for a visit with my family. So with the anticipated absence of the kids most of the summer, we went out and spent an insane amount of money to see UP in 3D. Joel actually did pretty well. He got a bit antsy about halfway through, but I pulled him onto my lap and he sat through the rest just fine, until he had to use the bathroom. I made him tough it out though. Oh, and warning if you haven't seen it, the beginning is a tear jerker, but all together a great family movie. I don't know what I'll do without them all summer, it'll be way too quiet around here, that and I'll have to do the dishes.

Weekend Getaway

I managed to have a long weekend this past weekend. My regular days off were Wednesday and Thursday and I managed to get Friday and Saturday off as comp time for working holidays. I got errands done (laundry and a trip to the meat market) and I also got some pampering (Highlights and a trim). I spent some quality time with Joel, and even got to go to Wes' niece's softball game.
Friday evening we set off for Lake Marion. We got settled and spent the evening in. Saturday I actually got up kind of early, took a walk with the kids and spent some time at the playground. After lunch Lauren and Angie arrived. The kids and I headed for the pool, soon after joined by Lauren and Angie. Then it was time for Wes and I to head to Darlington for the race.
It was a great race! Lots of excitement, lead changes, crashes and even one inferno. We paqrked in someone's backyard for cheaper than the lot price and they gave us a short cut to the track. The other advantage was the house being on the side street so the traffic out wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. After a stop at a Waffle House, we rolled back into the camper at about 3 am.
Sunday after sleeping in, we spent the day down at the lake shore taking rides on the jet ski. Wes and I rode up by the Nature Preserve. Too bad I didn't have my camera. The cypress trees and herrons were gorgeous.
Then it was time to pack up and head home in time for me to catch a nap before work. Wes went to pick up Gillian from his mom's house only to find she'd jumped the fence. Dang dog. Jo called Monday afternoon to say she'd come bacvk, so after dinner Mackenzie and I went and got her. Don't know what I'm going to do with that dog!

Joel issues

I don't know if it is regression, or wanting attention or what, but Joel has been driving me nuts lately! He's been throwing a fit at every single little thing. He sneaks into the kitchen, takes a bite out of something then puts it back. Or he'll gorge himself on whatever junk he can get his hands on. He is banned from the computer because he keeps treating it like a drum set. But unless I keep it in my sight at all times, he will sneak onto that too. I'm now missing my space bar and my N key. Oh, and the receiver for the wireless mouse? He broke that off in the USB port! He is just driving me insane! And I have to somehow get him ready for kindergarden in the fall. The one good thing? We are totally out of pull ups, even at night. Now I just have to work on the thumb and the blankie, oh and the latent toddler behavior he's been exhibiting.

Now I'm missing my own important days

I used to be really good at remembering birthdays and anniversaries. I really did. Now I'm horrible about it. And now I'm even forgetting my own. It was my "blog"iversary in February and I missed it. Well, please feel free to send all belated well wishes and gifts, I'll still accept them.

Happiness Is...

Going to Costco. No, really. I haven't been in so long and there is something very comforting about having 100 rolls of toilet paper and a 5 gallon jug of shampoo.

Fresh Krispy Kreme doughnuts. The nearest Krispy Kreme happens to be down the street from Costco, so of course we had to go, and wouldn't you know, fresh doughnuts were marching down the conveyer belt when we walked in.

Requesting time off from work and actually getting it approved. Ok, so it took them two months to approve, but never the less.

Using said time off to get out of town. Not a huge outing, just heading to the lake with the kids. But on Saturday Wes and I are making a detour to Darlington for the NASCAR race. Don't worry, the kids will be with Wes' sister while we're gone.

Getting caught up on laundry. And I don't have to start agin until Wednesday. A whole two days of not doing laundry!

Your daughter going to her first concert. A friend of Mackenzie's, and a neighbor of ours had tickets to the Taylor Swift concert and invited Mackenzie to go along. I told her at first she couldn't go, but only because I wanted to go. But go she did and she had a great time.

Getting a long overdue manicure and pedicure.

Chicken bowls from Kyoto. Seriously, I've never had anything like it. Kyoto is a local Teriyaki place and they make these chicken and rice bowls that are awesome by themselves, but then they give you this sauce to put on it and it becomes the best thing you've ever eaten.

Behind the times

A lot has been going on around here. Spring has hit in full force and the weather has been gorgeous (aside from a tornado and a flood watch). In Washington you knew spring was coming by the tulips, daffodils and crocuses. Here its the azaleas. And they are everywhere. Kind of like Tulips in Mt Vernon. We went to the Azalea festival last weekend, a big street fair. We had to leave before we hit the rides though, it started to rain and people here are wusses about a little rain.
We also have a new puppy. Wes the big softy that he is brought her home after a co worker had brought in a litter that had been abandoned on his door step. Briana got to name her and named her Sassy. She is very cute and the house training is coming along.
It was again report card time, and as usual the kids did very well. I also got brave and spoke at Mackenzie's career day. Joey's band participated in a state competition, something like the Abbotsford festival for those that remember my band days. For a middle school band, I have been quite impressed with them.
Work continues to be work. Although they've recently let someone from my shift and my building go so that has given me an opportunity for more responsibility. BUT since the letting go of said person I have been looking for a different job. The politics in this job are a bit more than I can take. The supervisors play favorites with no real criteria and even thought I seem to fit the bill, I don't like the game. That and I am really struggling with the schedule. So, wish me luck on finding a real 9-5.
I have pictures posted on facebook from the last month or so, and I will post some here soon.
Happy Easter to all!

I did the macarena with a ninja riding a motorbike because I'm sexy and I do what I want

Wes:
I kicked my science teacher sliding down a hill because my family thinks I'm stupid anyway.
Joey:
I did the macarena with a llama sliding down a hillbecause I'm sexy and do what I want.
Mackenzie:
I jumped on a spoon in line at the bank because I can.
Joel:
I loved a snowman under your bed because big bird said to and he's my leader.


Don't spoil the fun, and keep it going............. Type out the sentence you end up with in the comment box. Then copy and paste this to your blog (or facebook) with the Title being the sentence that you ended up with.
Pick the month you were born:
January-------I kicked
February------I loved
March--------I karate chopped
April----------I licked
May----------I jumped on
June----------I smelled
July-----------I did the Macarena With
August--------I had lunch with
September----I danced with
October-------I sang to
November-----I yelled at
December-----I ran over
Pick the day (number) you were born on:
1-------a birdbath
2-------a monster
3-------a phone
4-------a fork
5-------a snowman
6-------a gangster
7-------my mobile phone
8-------my dog
9-------my best friends' boyfriend
10-------my neighbor
11-------my science teacher
12-------a banana
13-------a fireman
14-------a stuffed animal
15-------a goat
16--- ----a pickle
17-------your mom
18-------a spoon
19------ - a smurf
20-------a baseball bat
21-------a ninja
22-------Chuck Norris
23-------a noodle
24-------a squirrel
25-------a football player
26-------my sister
27-------my brother
28-------an iPod
29-------a surfer
30-------a homeless guy
31-------a llama
What is the last number of the year you were born:
1--------- In my car
2 --------- On your car
3 ----------- In a hole
4 ----------- Under your bed
5 ----------- Riding a Motorcycle
6 --------- sliding down a hill
7 --------- in an elevator
8---------- at the dinner table
9 -------- In line at the bank
0 -------- in your bathroom
Pick the color of shirt you are wearing:
White---------because I'm cool like that
Black---------because that's how I roll.
Pink-----------because I'm NOT crazy.
Red-----------because the voices told me to.
Blue-----------because I'm sexy and I do what I want
Green---------because I think I need some serious help.
Purple---------because I'm AWESOME!
Gray----------because Big Bird said to and he's my leader.
Yellow--------Orange--------because my family thinks I'm stupid anyway.
Brown---------because I can.
Other----------because I'm a Ninja!
None----------because I can't control myself!

I'm not ignoring you, I promise!

You would think after 4 1/2 months I would be used to my schedule. Not so much. I'm good for about the first 2 weeks of my revovling schedule, then the last 2 weeks I turn to mush. I have a hard time getting to sleep when I first get home in the mornings, so when I get up when the kids get home I drag around making dinner and getting little things done until about 7, then I no longer have the energy to even lift my head up. It gets to the point where I'm almost too tired to even sleep. So I go to work tired, and drag my way through somehow, then when the consumers get up in the morning I get re-energized by the goings on and hyperactivity and hussle in general that I'm now too amped to sleep when I get home. Its a vicious cycle.

Then my schedule repeats itself, I get 2 days off in a row and I'm able to get back on track. But during those two weeks of zombie-hood, I get nothing extra done. I barely get to the grocery store. Little things like logging on to the internet just kind of slide down the proverbial ladder of importance.

I say I can't wait for next fall when Joel will be in school and I can apply for a day position, but I'm not sure that will solve my issues either. I think the root is not having a "regular" schedule. Work 4 days, 2 off, work 3, 1 off, work 4, 2 off, work 4, 1 off. It messes with my inner clock. My body can't adjust to a month long inner calender. Weekly yes, monthly, no. I could give up weekends if I could just have the same 2 days off back to back each week. But I guess that makes too much sense. As much as I like my job and what I do, and as much as I know right now is not a time to be looking for another job, I think I need to look for another job. No I'm not going to quit first. I will probably soldier through until the fall regardless, but at that time it might be time for me to try and find banking hours somewhere. If such a job exists.

Oh well, life sucks, right? I've survived so far, I can make it.

Mysterious fevers and things you thought only existed on tv

There is a mysterious fever going through members of our household. What is strange is it is a symptomless fever. No runny nose, aches, pains, nothing. A slight headache and being a bit tired. That's it. Joel's had it twice now, Mackenzie and I each had it once. I am almost out of Children's Tylenol now.
You know on those kids sitcoms back in the day, like Saved by the Bell and Head of the class, there was always a team of smart kids that then battled other schools in knowledge tournaments? We never had that in my schools that I'm aware of. I figured it was something made up for television to show competition outside of sports. Anyway, it exists. Here its called quiz bowl, and Joey was selected for his school's team. They didn't win, but they made a fairly decent showing. He was pretty excited about being a part of it. Just thought I'd share.
Mackenzie and a friend in her class are so far ahead in math, her teacher has let them move ahead on their own. But she didn't test into the gifted and talented program. I don't get it. Tests are stupid, and I've always thought so.

Secrets of Southern Cooking

I've mastered southern cooking, or atleast the fundamentals behind it. Lots of meat deep fried or babecued, rice and anything else mushy and tasteless on the side (collards, black eyed peas, cream corn, potatoes, beans) and then layer everything in salt and pepper. Oh, and smother it in butter.
Seriously, has no one around here heard of cholesterol or seasoning? You can start simpple with some oregano or cilantro. And ovens are good for more than cakes and pies, I promise!

Run for the hills, I might be creative!

Idea provided by Rachel:
This is open to anyone who reads my blog!

The first FIVE people to respond to this post will get something made by yours truly!!

I get to chose what it is, and make it just for YOU!!

However, this offer does have some restrictions and limitations

1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make! (although I'm hoping you do!)

2- What I create will be just for you.

3- It will be done this year. (before December 31, 2009!)

4- You have no clue what it's going to be. I'm not super good at any one thing, but I will put my heart and soul into it.

There is one little catch. You must re-post this on YOUR blog, facebook, or whatever you use to contact the masses and make the same offer to the first 5 people who respond on your blog entry, thereby continuing the fun! (Keep it local if you would like, however you want to do it is fine.)

The first 5 people to leave a comment telling me they will be posting this on their blog will win a special something made by me!

Be sure to post a picture of your handmade prize when you get it!

Should be a fun and interesting little experiment and I am hoping that God will use it as a blessing too. :)

ANother note: This would mean that all you floaters out there that read but don't comment MUST comment this time, otherwise, how do I know who you are?

Sad Day

Wes's dog Zeus has been sick for a while. They took him to a vet. At first they thought parasite, but did more tests and found a mass in his stomach. He was on meds, but in the last he week stopped eating.
Wes had to put him to sleep to day. I don't think it would have been so hard, but it came on so suddenly, and in the end he was just wasting away. Because he's a rottweiler, our landlords vetoed us having him here with us, but Wes went to see him at his mom's whenever he could. He was a big 'ol sweet teddy bear of a dog, and we'll all miss him. It was especially hard on Briana since she grew up with Zeus.
Sorry for the downer, but I though it was worth mentioning.

It must be in the water

When I found out I was pregnant with Joey I was working at the Child Development Center in Turkey. What was funny was 3 other women found out they were pregnant, all within 2 weeks of each other. We couldn't blame the water because no one drank the tap water there (think Mexico) and not all of us drank the same brand of bottled. But when the one male working at the center found out his wife was pregnant, we all turned out heads to our cook.
What's the point? Just one of those weird things about working with a bunch of women. In my building, we have 3 ladies pregnant right now. One of them on my shift. Its making the rest of us a little paranoid though, most of us consider our baby making days over. Some are in the clear (by age or design or surgery) but some of us, not so much. We are about to resort to wearing garlic around our necks just in case.
In other news...
I experienced another local tradition yesterday. The meat market. We got about a months worth of meat in one day. It was totally cheap and fresh, but buying it in bulk that way meant breaking it up into servicable sizes once we got home. Elbow deep in raw meat is always fun. Now I just need to come up with recipes for all this stuff!
Joel takes a little too much after me sometimes. If he can't do things the way he has it in his head to do, he blows a gasket. Example: The other night we ate dinner a little late, so he was finishing up his dessert right before bedtime. He put his bowl in the sink then came out to me to get a kiss and hug goodnight (he always insists on both). He'd left the lights on in the kitchen, so I made him go back to turn them off. He did, whining the whole way. I assume its because I actually made him do something. No, on his way back he yelled at me, "I wanted to turn off the light AFTER my hug and kiss!" He does the same thing in the mornings sometimes. If I don't have to wake him up to take Joey to school, he gets dressed before he comes downstairs, but if we take Joey to school, he has to eat breakfast first. Sometimes I try to buy a few minutes and ask him to get dressed first. You'd think I was asking him to step on nails all the way up the stairs!

Back to our regularly scheduled programming

Just some bits and pieces from the last few days. Saturday night we did Chinese. I made the pork fried rice, Wes tackled the egg rolls. Later that evening, Wes and Mackenzie were battling on Guitar Hero. After a sudden death play off....Mackenzie won.

He said she said

I apologize in advance for this post. This is not what I want my blog to be about, but I feel I can't sit here and take what has been thrown at me.
I have never used this blog as a forum to launch a smear campaign against people. Yes, I've complained about my job and my supervisors, but I didn't name names and I'm pretty sure nobody even associated with them read my blog. I don't set out to humiliate people. My other reason is that I know I'm not perfect. I know that before I say things about other people I need to look at myself.
Yes, there are things about me that could change for the better. I have the tendency to put things off until the last second, and those things that I think will be unpleasant for me I will put off until even longer because I stupidly hope they will go away. This is why I have avoided doing this, because it is a pointless game of back and forth. You did this, I did that. Please world see that I am the better person because of what has been done to me.
I don't blame my life on other people. I never have. I suppose some people could see it that way because of things I've said in frustration in the past, but I take responsibility for my life. I'm the one that got married in stead of going to college. I'm the one that had kids early instead of going to college. I'm the one that chose to stay home with my kids as much as I could instead of working all the time. Sometimes I had to work, other times I was able to stay home. I agree that in staying home the majority of housework should have been on me, but I also admit that I suck at it. I'm good at being a mom, but I'm no good at being a house wife.
For the record, from the time I got married, here is my job history:
In Turkey there were few jobs available for military family members, even less for a 19 year old just out of high school with little job experience. But I put in my applications and waited. And waited. In the meantime I volunteered once a week at the vet clinic. I did real work there. I assisted in exams, cleaned up messes, gave shots, got scratched, scrubbed cages. Then a job at the child development center became available. Then I got pregnant. About that time my hours at the cdc were diminished, and my choices for child birth in the area did not appeal to me. My sister offered to pay to babysit her kids, and my mom offered up her spare room, and Ft Lewis had an excellent Labor & Delivery ward. So, I went back to Washington, this was a mutual decision.
After Joey was born we moved to Ft. Campbell. I spent my days with a new born and unpacking and setting up our house. When Joey was 9 months old it became apparent that we needed a second income, so I went and found work. Another daycare center. After a few months internal issues at that day care center made it a volatile place to work. I developed stress related medical issues, so I gave my notice and found a new job. I was only without work for a week. Then we moved to Germany. Again a place with few jobs for spouses. Even less than in Turkey. No cdc, no commissary, no px. But I had another baby on the way, so I would be busy enough. But I was offered a job at an international preschool. My kids were able to go for free since I worked there. It was across the street form out apartment, and I really liked being a teacher. It was a great job. When the director saw me during a visit back to Germany a couple of years ago, she tried to offer me the same job again, so I think I was good at it. I worked there right up until we moved again. In New Jersey it was now apparent that any job I could get would not offset the cost of child care. We would have to pay before and after school care for Joey, and full time care for Mackenzie. But when Mackenzie was able to go to full time preschool that was subsidized (free), I got a part time job. I was still there to see them off to school, and there when they got home. It was a great situation. Then came Joel. I didn't work when Joel was young. Well, except for when I was in Washington while Mike was in Drill Sergeant school. And then I worked part time and only because my parents were able to look after my kids. But I stayed home the whole time we were in Columbia because that is what made the most sense. We couldn't afford all the child care expenses that would be necessary if I worked, and because of Mike's schedule, alternative work schedules (like 2nd or 3rd shift) were not an option either. So I chose to stay home. To say I was lazy is an insult not just to me, but to all stay at home moms. I felt blessed that I was able to stay home and take care of my kids. Yes maybe my house wasn't spotless, and maybe we ate frozen foods more often than not, but my kids were well cared for. I saw them off to school, helped with homework, volunteered at the school, drove everyone to dr's appointments, sports, and other activities. Not to mention I was going to school at the time, pulling off a 4.0 gpa. I have always been my children's primary care giver and I am proud of that.
What I'm getting at is, people should get their facts straight before they try to diminish what I have done with my life. And those that live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. I don't blame my life circumstances on anyone else, I am not a victim. If other people want to be victims, that is fine, but to say that I am the cause of where your life is gives me a lot more power than I actually possess.

I can only do one thing at once

I used to be good at meal planning, I think I mentioned that, but I suck at it now. I think it is because my budget works differently, so I need to adjust according to that, but haven't figured out how yet.
I had caught up on laundry, then I got sick and decided to take the weekend off. Now I'm behind again, but also had to go back to work, so I'm not catching up either.
The state provides an opportunity as an employee for me to purchase budget life insurance for my kids, but the system thinks they're already covered. I don't know how that's possible, but now I have to figure that out too.
Joey is trying out for baseball. If he makes the team, he needs a physical, so I'm going to have to figure out the whole medical insurance thing.
I was out of cat litter. A pet store near me has a deal where I can refill a pre purchased bucket for x amount of dollars. I should have known they close at 6 on Sundays. I forgot to go yesterday, what with trying to slepp enough to be able to go back to work last night, but I finally made it out there tonight. After the cat pooped on the floor.
The nurses at work swear that a certain consumer's meds haven't been altered, but then why out of no where is she up ALL night and ALL day for a week straight now?
With Joey possibly playing baseball, Mackenzie really wants to play soccer again. The going rate is $80 to register. That doesn't count equipment. And Joey would like to do Little League if he doesn't make the school team, another $80. And Joel has (seriously) said he wants to play football next fall. (all together now) Another $80.
After taking care of the cat, and helping Joey walk the dog (he's having issues, so we're going through a sort of training program) I forgot to feed the fish. So, I guess I can really only take care of 3 animals at a time. Thank goodness Mackenzie has to guinea pigs care under control.
Moral of the story:
Mom's aren't allowed sick leave.

UTI's and URI's otherwise entitled Brenda goes to the doctor

Between losing and gaining medical insurance a couple of times in the past couple years, I haven't been the most frequent visitor of medical centers for myself. But I was having some "potty" issues and finally decided to give my new insurance a work out. Now, I've had a bit of a cold for a couple of days too, but its a cold, we just have to wait those out right? Right. So, I go in, get my vitals done, give a urine sample and wait for the doctor to give me 2 minutes, write me scrip and send me home. I had the great fortune of seeing a Nurse Practioner that believes in spending more than 2 minutes with a patient. She took one look at me and said we're gonna take a look at that cold too.
So, I walked out of the doctor's office diagnosed with a UTI (urinary tract infection), URI (upper respitory infection), bronchitis, and an ear infection. I got to have a cortizone shot in my butt, nose spray for my nose and a fun antibiotic that doesn't have a generic equivalent yet.
Remind me not to complain the next time one of my kids breaks a bone.

Happy Birthday Joel!!!

So my baby turned 5 today. I've been sick the last few days, so it wasn't a big extravaganza, but the great thing about 5 year olds - they don't need it. We went to McDonald's for dinner (some place that at one point wasn't all that out of the ordinary, but lately is) and actually went inside (which hardly ever happens) and played "at the park" as the kids call it (which we NEVER do except on road trips.) I did manage to get a cake made, but didn't grease the pan well enough, so it was stuck to the bottom. I started to write "Happy Birthday Joel" with one of those gel pens you get from the super market, but ran out before I got to the Joel. But, I had some left over white icing. I added a little milk to it, the nuked it for about 10 seconds (it had been in the fridge), put some in a ziplock, cut a corner off and used it to write the Joel. So all's well that ends well. Enjoy the pics.

Not wanting to add to my list...

But I'm going to try to blog more. I say this today, and it will probably be a month until I blog again. So today was a pretty basic day. I'm surrounded by laundry, but making headway. This week I'm trying to catch up enough to do laundry twice a week. The hope is that this will cut down the size of the loads and the amount of time spent sorting, drying, folding, and putting away. Good luck to me.
I was also behind on my meal planning, so there was nothing for dinner tonight. And we were out of bread. Mackenzie and I headed out to grab something to eat, and this is what we came home to:


I woke them up to say that dinner was here, but they are both still asleep on the couch.
Speaking of laundry, the drier has gone off, back to the folding board.

Apparantly I don't blog enough

I've received a complaint that it is too long between blogs. Now I'm in a pickle. My life is boring. Really, nothing happens around here. And I'm usually asleep when the kids do anything blog worthy. But, I'll give it a try...
Joel doesn't like it when Wes and I hug each other. Or maybe its just that he doesn't like being left out. Every time we hug, he wedges himself in between us, taking turns as to which on of us he grans onto. He gets really mad when we see him coming and "close the gap". Then he'll start slapping one of us on the rump until we let him in.
Joey had his first official band concert. Ok, his first official one here. Being a former band nerd myself, I am quite prepared for middle school level band playing. The rhythm section is usually off and there are usually quite a few sqeeks from various instruments that aren't quite finding the right note. Not to mention middle school bands tend to be "top" heavy. Lots of wind intruments, lots of trumpets, very little bass section. I must say, I was very impressed. They were quite good. I'm in the process of securing a copy of the recording from Joey's teachers, so I will try to post the video.
Mackenzie is her usual self, although her attitude is getting to new levels. She employs the foot stomp more often than she used to, and the range of her whining seems to go up with age. I'd rather hoped it would be the opposite. She's already planning her birhtday...in May, and for anyone that wants to know, she wants earrings. I told her that was actually a quite reasonable request. She seemed shocked to hear that.
Me, well I go to work, I sleep, then I work around here. Then I do it all over again. But that's the story of many people's lives. My biggest project right now is staying on top of the laundry and finding new and simple things to make for dinner. I miss having the internet at work. I seem to have more down time there than at home. Although not so much last night. They all seem to be on a similar cycle with their behavior, and last night was the night too be throwing fits and seeing things that aren't there. Its one of those frustrating things about an insitutional surrounding. When your child is on medication of any kind, it is the parent's job to monitor behavior. In the case of where I work, we HSA's are the closest thing, we are the day to day care providers, and the only information anyone takes from us is on a little worksheet where we right down who's sleeping, whose hallucinating, etc. No one ever asks us to ellaborate, then the doctors adjust medications without telling us and we have to wonder why someone is acting funny. Oh well, c'est la ville.

Catch up

I've been on blogging hiatus. Mostly because when something is truly bugging me, I avoid my blog in order to keep myself from whining on it. I'm still having issues with the management at my job. The charge person on my shift is great, no problems there. We have almost identical schedules, so we probably work together more than any other two people on our shift and we have a good repore and work well together. I don't have authority issues, and I think I take direction pretty well, but when someone dictates to me that I have plenty of time to add this that and the other thing to my duties, and I try to explain to that person that what is being asked while not impossible will require back up from the other 2 shifts, and said person cuts me off without letting me finish a sentence, I get a little irked. Disrespect bothers me to no end. I may be the new person, but this woman has been absent for most of my tenure at my job, so to shut me down like I'm lazy and looking for an out was almost it for me. Good thing the economy sucks, or I might have walked away. Said person is the supervisor for my building and I think she has lost touch with reality, and what it is like to be in our (the human services assitants) shoes. Then there is our area supervisor. She is the one who does the interviewing and hiring, and does the schedules, approves leave and what not. She has said out loud that she will not be approving any leave for third shift for the foreseeable future. It's not like we are all asking for blocks of long term leave here, we just want to take our holiday comp time. One day here and there. If you aren't going to give me comp time, then pay me double time for working on a holiday. Scratch that, EVERY holiday since November. I'm living up to my end of the bargain as far as what is expected of me in my employment, they need to live up to theirs. Ok, and this is nit picky, but neither one of these people can write out a coherent sentence. No, I mean it, every time I have to read something either one of them has written, I have to go over 3 or 4 times. I don't have a full college education, but I learned most of my writing skills in highschool, and that is a requirement for any position held at the center.
In other news.....
Wes had a birthday on January 11th. Here's his "cake":

He wanted brownies instead of a cake.


Also, the kids got their report cards and both did really well. Mackenzie came home with all A's and perfect attendance. Joey once again missed two A's by one point each, but I'm still proud. Mackenzie's school has started an after school sports program for A/B honor roll students. It's very intense: kick ball and cheerleading. She did cheerleading last trimester, so she is trying kick ball this time. Joey wants to play baseball for his school this spring. He's looking forward to that starting in a couple months. For now we're braving the cold weather we've been having, but have so far warded off the snow. Thank goodness for small favors! Joel continues to do his own thing. He sleeps in, even though I wake him up most mornings to drive Joey to school, wakes me up for breakfast, then passes his time on nick.com or playing the Wii until his brother and sister get home and he can go outside.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

One of my new recipes. The kids weren't big fans, but then again, they cringe at anything new. Wes and I loved it, and Joey said it was "pretty" good. I also did tuna melts the other day, but didn't have batteries for my camera yet, so next time. I put a little too much chicken, so it was more stew than soup. I had been multi tasking (really this time!) and had asked Wes to cube up the chicken for me. I swear I said it was too much for the soup and that we could save half for later, but he must have missed that. Oh well, it was super yummy anyway.

Is it all just a hoax?

My kids had an extended holiday weekend, today was a teacher work day. Ok, but at about 1pm, I got an automated call from Joey's school saying that school was letting out 2 hours early today due to impending inclement weather (it MIGHT snow). Um, wasn't there no school today? But, there are 30 kids running around outside, so now. So lets talk about this snow thing. First of all, the traditional snow panic is in effect. Everyone is lining up at the store for milk, bread, and batteries. I've seen about 5 snowflakes so far. It may still hit some time overnight, just in time for me to drive home in, yay! I'm not worried about driving myself, but all the other crazies out on the road have me worried. Then again, it may do absolutely nothing. Either way, it's extremely cold out there. Can I call out sick?

I used to....

There was a time before I was a single mom that I did meal planning, and was a much more careful shopper. I was pretty good at it. Well, I'm taking a page from Rachel's book and starting to do that again. I've started with ivillage.com. I've gone there before for many different things. They have messages boards for just about every woman's issue/concern/interest you can think of. So now I'm going to them for recipe ideas. I'm a decent cook, but I don't enjoy cooking. I like it when I can pull something off that's a hit with everyone, but I never expect it. And I certainly am no good at coming up with new ideas. If it were left up to me we'd have spaghetti, sloppy joes, grilled chicken, and grilled pork chops with the occasional steak thrown in over and over. But I'm making a new effort! And I figure by posting it, Rachel and I and anyone else that wants to join in my new resolve can help each other out, share cool recipes we've found. Kind of like a work out buddy, but we're we aren't professional chefs but still need variety buddies. At least I hope, lol.

I did it!

See? I did it! Thanks Rachel for the offer, I didn't want to bother you with a house full of sick kids, so I gave it one more try on my own. If this hadn't worked, then I was gonna bother you. Thanks so much for the offer though!

Memories part 3

Here is a crowd pleaser! How many hours did I waste sitting in a Denny's drinking a Coke? And eating mozzarella sticks? And trying to develop a taste for coffee (wasn't gonna happen). It was the meeting point, the hangout, the round up at the end of the night. And sometimes even the hideout. Or just the place to sit and laugh about the night's adverntures (like tp'ing someone's house....), or the place to go when you've been on a plane for several hours and your friends tagged along with your parents to meet you at the airport and you're pregnant and starving. I miss Denny's, we don't have any out here, but we do have Waffle House. Not quite the same, but still a good place to go at the end of the night.